Judge, 1905-09-02 · page 14 of 16
Judge — September 2, 1905 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page's main content is promotional writing disguised as editorial. "Drummers" refers to traveling salesmen—a common fixture in American commerce. The accompanying illustration shows two well-dressed businessmen exchanging stories in a hotel lobby, establishing the "typical" drummer's identity and lifestyle. The text employs a satirical meta-commentary: it argues that Judge's advertising columns serve the public as useful guides to consumer goods—razors, spirits, cigars, hotels—much like a directory. The implicit joke is that Judge is defending advertising's prominence by reframing consumption as practical necessity. The repeated plugs for Judge and Leslie's Weekly within the narrative are themselves advertisements disguised as editorial content, exemplifying exactly what the piece describes: useful information clothed in entertainment. The page represents turn-of-century advertising strategy: making sales pitches entertaining and normalizing commercial messaging as legitimate editorial content.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Typical American Drummers The accompanying plate presents two figures drawn from life expressly for JUDGE, a typical American drummer, too well known to require further introduction here. Perhaps your first impulse will be to pass the design with slight notice, since it serves for an advertisement. But do not adver- tisements serve the public? Are they not suggestive of real wants, and useful in filling them? Let us suppose there were no advertisements in JUDGE, would its columns be more interesting, or more useful? You might as well remove the directory from the vestibule of a building given over to many kinds of business, as to withdraw the advertising columns from JUDGE, or any other periodical. ‘These columns are of special value in many instances. JUDGE has capable artists who are willing to prepare designs for advertisers without extra charge, and these designs, produced at considerable cost, are useful in conveying ideas to JUDGE'S readers which plain text could not present so clearly. The case in point illustrates this, Here is shown pictorially the sug- gestions : These two young Americans wear good hats, clothes, shoes, sus- penders, shirts, collars, cuffs and cravats ; they carry up-to-date dress-suit cases, and just now are exchanging stories in the lobby of a first-class hotel, such as they always patronize. Happening to meet in front of the news-stand they will presently purchase copies of JUDGE and LESLIE'S WEEKLY, which are very prominently displayed. In LESLIE’S WEEKLY they will find the latest war news and an illustrated panorama of the affairs of the entire world, and incidentally inside information as to what to do and what not to do in financial matters. In JUDGE will be found pictures and fun to drive away the blues— which the drummer gets when far from home—while in the advertising columns they will get the latest information as to the best razors, shaving soaps, toilet articles, clothing of all sorts, railroads, hotels, wines, spirits, ale, beer, cigars, tobacco, cigarettes, and about everything that men require or desire. Ask any commercial man and he will tell you that JUDGE'S stories and jokes are an essential part of his outfit. We are not soliciting advertisements of lingerie, but if this should catch the eye of any advertiser who has a worthy article to sell to men we are in the market for our share of the business, and will in every honor- able way try to make the advertising columns of our periodicals pay such an investor. Very truly yours, vyyyY yyy YY Te ttt eTyTyyYYyryrvyyyyy vv yvyvvvyyyys Judge Company =| MASTER BARBERS MEET. The State Barbers Association met in Pough- keepsie, New York, August rsth, 16th, 17th, and elected the following officers : President, Joseph Miller, of New Vork ; vice- presidents, F. V. Stanzioni, of New York; ‘Adam Altheim, of Albany keensie ; secretary, John R. ford Avenue, Brc phan, of Brookly: Luckow, of Brooklyn. Next year’s conv ntion will be held at Sche- nectady, New York. The delegates voted to uphold the Sunday- closing law, the license law, and the law which is intended’ to improve the sanitary condition of the shops. Every delegate had a copy of Jupce in his pocket and a smile un his face. 1, John Ste. statistician, Cary J. HL whiskey. M ately pare limestone well water, Ferdinand Westheimer & Sons DISTILLERS Clncinnatl,O. St. Joseph, Mo, Louisville, America’s Finest Whiskey— RED TOP RYE Its up toYOU AND HE DIDN’ “George said he went to a Turkish bath last night, and that's what kept him out late,” remarked Mrs. Newliwed. “L don't believe there is such a thing as a Turkish bath,” replied her mother. “You don't? Why?” “Because I saw a Turk once."—Cath jade of choicest Northera Rye and abso Royal Highness— The American Gentleman.” RED Top RYE is an honest olic Standard. FOR PEOPLE WHO LOVE LUXURY. Pouple of mulerate means, who love comfort | tiness of surroundings, will appreciate ble suggestions on fitting up dens, with illustrations of unique and artistic arrange- ments of pictures. Send five cents for our Blue | Booklet on den work. Art lovers will also be repaid by sending two cents for our Blue cata- | lngue, with illustrations of our beautiful repro- 25 to 30 per cent. stom to get tracts and Baking Powder. G00D INCOMES FOR ALL. ‘orders beated Teas, Coffees, Spices, Ex. B.G. E., caro THE GREAT AERIGAN TEA a Jox BND, 31-33 Verey Street, N.Y. ductions of copyrighted drawings. Address Picture Department, Judge Company, 225 | Fourth Avenue, New Vor ASBURY PARK BOOKLET. Company. an attractive booklet descriptive of Asbury Park. publication is ‘laims of Asbury Park as a summer seas Persons desiring information concerning. thin NOW READY... “THIS @ THAT” About Caricatare By ZIM: A book of sound advice for the comicnart student two cents in postage stamps to Ge Vassenger Agent, Pennsylvania Ratroad, Fi Descriptive Publication Issued by the Pennsylvania Railroad ‘The Pennsylvania Railroad Company has just ison! The to ‘present the attractions ani resort may obtain a copy of the booklet by. iclosing f e W. Boyd, General fuladelphia, $1.50 by m Address E. Zim, Horseh: ads, N.Y. ‘You will get more prompt attention and better service by mentioning Jooce wlien answering advertisements. A CIRCULATION SURPRISE FACTS FOR MEN WHO SHAVE OR GET SHAVED, OR DEAL IN SHAVERS’ SUPPLIES A recent critical investigation covering the entire country, made by two of the largest advertisers in America who manufacture goods for shavers, showed that Judge was on file in more than 75 per cent. of all the desirable barber-shops. dn the case of Advertiser No. I, the renewal calls for just double the space on the last order (2,500 lines). Advertiser No. 2, oho had never before used Judge, placed an order for nearly Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00). Judge is sold regularly to more than 20,000 up-to-date barbers. These pro- prietors employ from one to ten assistants, probably an average of four, a total of 80,000, and a grand total of 100,000 BARBERS Each one of these tonsorial artists probably shaves five customers daily. These customers while they wait enjoy the columns of Judge, making a cir culation along this one line of THREE MILLIONS A WEEK Judge is reac, re-read, handled and passed around, until it has to be immersed in the sterilizer, along with all the rest of the barbers’ parapher- nalia, And Judge will stand a pressure of sixteen pounds of steam to the square inch, and emerge gay and smiling as ever. eeeeseceeceossooesence A WORD TO THE WISE SHAVER OR SHAVEE SHOULD BE SUFFICIENT 7 comicbooks.com Ae hi ; 8 § : rs SSGITTSTIIIIIIISSTITIISTTIISTIITOTITIIIITSTIIISVITIVETTISSTSEO88: